AT&T’s Using Caps, Promos to Drive Users to DirecTV

Looking to reverse recent subscriber losses, AT&T Is rolling out a new triple play promotion for customers that sign up for DirecTV, AT&T broadband, and voice service. According to the company’s announcement users can pay $90 per month for a triple-play that includes DirecTV Select ($50), a 6 Mbps data service (with a WiFi gateway for $30), and a voice offering that includes unlimited calls in the US and wireline-to-wireline calls to Canada and Mexico ($10). The $90 bundle, which will be available starting Thursday, lock in this pricing for a period of two years.

The bundle comes after last quarter’s earnings indicated that AT&T saw a net loss in phone, broadband, wireless and TV subscribers.

In addition to some new promotions, AT&T’s also trying to drive customers to DirecTV by using usage caps on both its wireless and fixed-line networks. AT&T recently imposed new usage caps, and informed its users they can avoid these caps in one of two ways: paying an additional $30 a month, or signing up for DirecTV or U-Verse TV (the latter of which AT&T looks to be shelving).

On the wireless front, AT&T recently returned to offering unlimited data, but only if (you guessed it), users subscribe to DirecTV.

In short, AT&T’s focusing first and foremost on using usage caps to drive both its wireless and wireline customers to DirecTV. The hope is that AT&T can justify the $69 billion the company spent on a satellite TV provider just as customers have begun moving away from traditional television.